
Imperfect Victims
Criminalized Survivors and the Promise of Abolition Feminism
Leigh Goodmark(Author)
University of California Press
1st Edition
Published on 31. January 2023
Book
Hardback
296 pages
978-0-520-39110-9 (ISBN)
Description
A profound, compelling argument for abolition feminism-to protect criminalized survivors of gender-based violence, we must dismantle the carceral system.
Since the 1970s, anti-violence advocates have worked to make the legal system more responsive to gender-based violence. But greater state intervention in cases of intimate partner violence, rape, sexual assault, and trafficking has led to the arrest, prosecution, conviction, and incarceration of victims, particularly women of color and trans and gender-nonconforming people. Imperfect Victims argues that only dismantling the system will bring that punishment to an end.
Amplifying the voices of survivors, including her own clients, abolitionist law professor Leigh Goodmark deftly guides readers on a step-by-step journey through the criminalization of survival. Abolition feminism reveals the possibility of a just world beyond the carceral state, which is fundamentally unable to respond to, let alone remedy, harm. As Imperfect Victims shows, abolition feminism is the only politics and practice that can undo the indescribable damage inflicted on survivors by the very system purporting to protect them.
Since the 1970s, anti-violence advocates have worked to make the legal system more responsive to gender-based violence. But greater state intervention in cases of intimate partner violence, rape, sexual assault, and trafficking has led to the arrest, prosecution, conviction, and incarceration of victims, particularly women of color and trans and gender-nonconforming people. Imperfect Victims argues that only dismantling the system will bring that punishment to an end.
Amplifying the voices of survivors, including her own clients, abolitionist law professor Leigh Goodmark deftly guides readers on a step-by-step journey through the criminalization of survival. Abolition feminism reveals the possibility of a just world beyond the carceral state, which is fundamentally unable to respond to, let alone remedy, harm. As Imperfect Victims shows, abolition feminism is the only politics and practice that can undo the indescribable damage inflicted on survivors by the very system purporting to protect them.
Reviews / Votes
"An essential read for anyone who wants a deeper understanding of the concept of abolition feminism and supports the rights of all survivors of domestic violence, regardless of their race or life circumstances." * Library Journal * "Goodmark buttresses her call for an abolition feminism opposed to the carceral system with harrowing case studies and hard data. This provocation hits the mark." * Publishers Weekly * "A great introduction to abolition feminism." * Criminal Justice Review * "An impressive contribution to the debates on abolition which must urgently be engaged in, around the world, as incarceration continues to be an unsuccessful and destructive response to violence." * International Review of Victimology *More details
Series
Edition
First Edition
Language
English
Place of publication
Berkerley
United States
Target group
Professional and scholarly
Product notice
Cloth over boards
Dimensions
Height: 229 mm
Width: 152 mm
Thickness: 23 mm
Weight
544 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-520-39110-9 (9780520391109)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions

E-Book
01/2023
1st Edition
Naval Institute Press
€24.49
Available for download
Person
Leigh Goodmark is Marjorie Cook Professor of Law at the University of Maryland Carey School of Law and the author of Decriminalizing Domestic Violence: A Balanced Policy Approach to Intimate Partner Violence and A Troubled Marriage: Domestic Violence and the Legal System.
Content
Contents
Preface
Acknowledgments
1. The Criminalization of Survival
2. Youth
3. Arrest and Prosecution
4. Punishment and Sentencing
5. Reconsideration and Clemency
6. Abolition Feminism
Notes
Bibliography
Index
Preface
Acknowledgments
1. The Criminalization of Survival
2. Youth
3. Arrest and Prosecution
4. Punishment and Sentencing
5. Reconsideration and Clemency
6. Abolition Feminism
Notes
Bibliography
Index